Nonstop flight route between Shemya, Alaska, United States and Nevis, Federation of Saint Kitts and Nevis:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States and Vance W. Amory International Airport (NEV), Nevis, Federation of Saint Kitts and Nevis would travel a Great Circle distance of 6,545 miles (or 10,533 kilometers).

A Great Circle is the shortest distance between 2 points on a sphere. Because most world maps are flat (but the Earth is round), the route of the shortest distance between 2 points on the Earth will often appear curved when viewed on a flat map, especially for long distances. If you were to simply draw a straight line on a flat map and measure a very long distance, it would likely be much further than if you were to lay a string between those two points on a globe. Because of the large distance between Eareckson Air Station and Vance W. Amory International Airport, the route shown on this map most likely appears curved because of this reason.

Try it at home! Get a globe and tightly lay a string between Eareckson Air Station and Vance W. Amory International Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Eareckson Air Station (SYA):

• On 28 May 1943, a small detachment of Alaskan Scouts began reconnaissance of Shemya, a small, flat, uninhabited island 35 miles to the east of Attu.
• The closest airport to Eareckson Air Station (SYA) is Casco Cove Coast Guard Station (ATU), which is located 40 miles (65 kilometers) WNW of SYA.
• In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and "  ".
• The aerial photos taken on the raid showed the Japanese were building up forces in the area, transferring aircraft presumably from air bases on Hokkaido.
• Because of Eareckson Air Station's relatively low elevation of 97 feet, planes can take off or land at Eareckson Air Station at a lower air speed than at airports located at a higher elevation. This is because the air density is higher closer to sea level than it would otherwise be at higher elevations.
• The furthest airport from Eareckson Air Station (SYA) is Cape Town International Airport (CPT), which is located 10,668 miles (17,168 kilometers) away in Cape Town, South Africa.
• The station was also used by SAC Cobra Ball and other related projects which monitored missile-associated signals and tracks missiles during boost and re-entry phases to provide reconnaissance for treaty verification and theater ballistic missile proliferation.
• Shemya also continued to support the Great Circle Route for MATS and later Military Airlift Command transports between Japan and Elmendorf AFB.
• Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.
• The news of the surrender of the Japanese was met with enthusiasm, the biggest topic was "When do we go home?".

Facts about Vance W. Amory International Airport (NEV):

• Vance W. Amory International Airport (NEV) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Vance W. Amory International Airport (NEV) is Port Hedland International Airport (PHE), which is nearly antipodal to Vance W. Amory International Airport (meaning Vance W. Amory International Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Port Hedland International Airport), and is located 12,204 miles (19,640 kilometers) away in Port Hedland, Western Australia, Australia.
• The closest airport to Vance W. Amory International Airport (NEV) is Robert L. Bradshaw International Airport (SKB), which is located only 11 miles (18 kilometers) NW of NEV.
• Because of Vance W. Amory International Airport's relatively low elevation of 14 feet, planes can take off or land at Vance W. Amory International Airport at a lower air speed than at airports located at a higher elevation. This is because the air density is higher closer to sea level than it would otherwise be at higher elevations.